Microscale thin-film thermocouples (TFTCs) which can be fabricated usi
ng existing microelectronics technology on the surfaces of electronic
devices with film thicknesses as small as tens of angstroms, have smal
ler thermoelectric potential compared to thick-film Eases. The qualita
tive characteristics of TFTCs, which have not yet been modeled success
fully, have been analyzed based on the model of distributed electric p
otential across the interface of two metals. The steady-stale solution
of the electron distribution and the electric potential distribution
by solving the one-dimensional Schrodinger equation and the Poisson eq
uation simultaneously show the decrease in the thermoelectric potentia
l quantitatively.